Candidates running for the Forest Grove School Board spoke out about several concerns they had with the district at a Wednesday night forum sponsored by the Forest Grove Leader.

Namely, issues with college and career readiness, enrollment, as well as the district's latest technology plan.

But first, they each clarified their own reasons for running.

Up for Position 3 is candidate Sebastian Bannister Lawler, a 23-year-old Pacific University graduate who currently volunteers with the American Red Cross. Running against him are Jeff Cooper, 55, a self-described "lifelong educator" laid off from Pacific University in 2007, and Lonnie Winkler, 36, a senior manager at EID Passport.

Bannister Lawler said his experience graduating from Forest Grove High School with a "quality education" was a big driver behind his candidacy.

"Not every student receives that same quality of education," he said. He wanted to see the district take a balanced approach between providing basic education with pursuing more cutting edge programs, "to create a school district that provides a well-rounded education, regardless of a student's cultural or economic background."

Cooper said his desire to serve on the board of directors was to make local education less centered around test scores.

"We really need something that can draw more students into the district," Cooper said. "There's nothing in the curriculum that shouts 'Hey! Come to Forest Grove.'"

Winkler said he was out to represent the grade schools, which are "horribly unrepresented on the board." He also emphasized the need for better communication, hoping to one day work as a conduit between the district and its community.

Charless Waterman, 36, who was appointed to the board in March, is running for Position 2 against Erin Fivecoat. Fivecoat, a 31-year-old instructional assistant at Portland Community College, did not attend the forum.

Waterman said she was running simply because "I care about the community, I care about the kids, and I want to make a difference."

When moderator George Rede, opinion editor for the Leader, asked if they thought the current school board was doing a good job, the candidates were mostly in agreement: they felt the district was doing a good job with what they have, especially in light of recent budget cuts.

But they differed on the issue of communication. Both Waterman and Bannister Lawler lauded the administration for improving its outreach to parents. Cooper and Winkler, however, strongly disagreed, emphasizing the need for stronger involvement from the community.

The administration "isn't used to communication coming down," Cooper said. "They're used to it flowing from the top" (14:37 on the video below).

Rede then asked candidates what experience they had working with a diversity of opinions.

Waterman and Winkler both cited their professional experience as examples of working with a variety of people and viewpoints. Cooper said his experience in academia taught him to work with people who "pulled him all different directions." Bannister Lawler pointed to his experience campaigning and talking to community members in the district, which he described as diverse.

As for the question of college and career readiness, all candidates were concerned with the district's ability to well equip students for the real world.

Waterman pointed to the remedial classes that some students from the district have to take in college as proof that the district could do better. The only way to do that, she said, is to better align the curriculum to ensure students are ready to take college level classes after graduating.

Cooper said he believed there was a lot the district could be doing, such as creating Individualized Education Plans for every student. (IEPs, currently, are created for special needs students only.)

Comparing the district to a business, Winkler (at 30:50) criticized the administration for not having a clear understanding of what skills students needed to graduate with to enter the workforce. Much like businesses gather data before creating a product, the district should get a better understanding of the skills local industries are looking for, he said.

Bannister Lawler said he thought the district was doing a good job preparing students for college, but should be also focusing its energy on providing training for students who want to find jobs straight out of high school.

All candidates said they were in favor of state's open enrollment law, which allows students to more easily switch to school districts outside their residential boundaries. But in light of the district losing a substantial number of students due to the new law, the candidates all said the district needs to find out why students are leaving.

Bannister Lawler said he wasn't aware of this, but that it should be looked into because "the last thing we need are dangerous folks working around our children." (at 42:23). Winkler, who was familiar with the incidents, called the situation "hairy," but an issue that was potentially irrelevant to the school district. Waterman declined to comment, saying she was unaware of the situation.

Cooper, however, described Rodriguez as an excellent principal. "Very unfortunate situation," he said (at 44:55). "I wish she would have called me, I would have given her a ride."

District parent Elizabeth Crane asked candidates about their feelings on challenging both high- and low-level students. Board member Kate Grandusky also asked about their thoughts on class size and funding for books.

All candidates agreed on the importance of challenging students on both ends of the spectrum. And all candidates supported funds for books and smaller class sizes.

Community member David Morelli asked candidates about their experience working with budgets. Cooper said as a former educator, he's worked within "shoestring" budgets, and went on to describe ideas for collaborating with tech companies for school resources.

Bannister Lawler responded that he wouldn't be making any budget decisions without consulting his constituents first.

Waterman's answer was similar, saying that while she didn't have experience controlling a big budget, she intended to administer the budget as a team member.

Winkler said he wanted to see an analysis of the district's programs to figure out what they cost and how many students benefit.

"I don't get some of the budget decisions that have been made. We're cutting here without concern of ramification of how many students are affected," he said (at 1:02:34).

Bannister Lawler said he was concerned with the district's decision to prioritize technology over funding more basic essentials, such as teachers. Waterman said she wanted to reserve judgement on the plan until she had more details. And Cooper said he was for it, but wanted the district to look at cheaper options.

Winkler was skeptical, and said he had a lot of questions about the technology plan. "We don't have the money to support several thousand machines if we're
talking about going one-on-one," he said. "There's still a lot of
questions to be answered."

The final question of the night came from community member Charlotte Lumae, who asked candidates what they realistically thought they could accomplish on the board.

As one person of a five-member board, Waterman said all she could do is advocate for students using the information available to her.

Cooper said even if he couldn't get all district students their IEPs or digital portfolios, he could at least try to work in that direction.

Bannister Lawler said he thought he would be able to work with state officials for more school funding.

Winkler, however, disagreed with Bannister Lawler, and said "I do not think what we need on this board is a politician," (1:15:30). But he did promise to ask questions, and take a critical look at the district's decision-making.